Note: Javascript is disabled or is not supported by your browser. For this reason, some items on this page will be unavailable. For more information about this message, please visit this page:
About CDC.gov

Understanding the current status of parents’ vaccine decision making is crucial to inform public policy. We sought to assess changes in vaccine decisions among parents of young children.

Methods

We conducted a web-based national poll of parents of children <7 years in 2012 and 2014. Participants reported vaccine decisions for their youngest child. We calculated survey-weighted population estimates of overall immunizations decisions, and delay/refusal rates for specific vaccines.

Results

In 2012, 89.2% (95% CI, 87.3–90.8%) reported accepting or planning to accept all recommended non-influenza childhood vaccines, 5.5% (4.5–6.6%) reported intentionally delaying one or more, and 5.4% (4.1–6.9%) reported refusing one or more vaccines. In 2014, the acceptance, delay, and refusal rates were 90.8% (89.3–92.1%), 5.6% (4.6–6.9%), and 3.6% (2.8–4.5%), respectively. Between 2012 and 2014, intentional vaccine refusal decreased slightly among parents of older children (2–6 years) but not younger children (0–1 years). The proportion of parents working to catch up on all vaccines increased while those refusing some but not all vaccines decreased. The South experienced a significant increase in estimated acceptance (90.1–94.1%) and a significant decrease in intentional ongoing refusal (5.0–2.1%). Vaccine delay increased in the Northeast (3.2–8.8%).

Conclusions

Nationally, acceptance and ongoing intentional delay of recommended non-influenza childhood vaccines were stable. These findings suggest that more effort is warranted to counter persistent vaccine hesitancy, particularly at the local level. Longitudinal monitoring of immunization attitudes is also warranted to evaluate temporal shifts over time and geographically.

Objectives : This study assessed influences on vaccination decisions among parents of young children and examined common vaccination information and advice sources. : Methods : Using panel samples of parents of children under 7 years, web-based surve...

Routine vaccination in the United States is widely viewed as one of the greatest public health achievements of the past century. Despite this success, an increasing number of parents have been expressing concerns about vaccine safety over the last tw...

OBJECTIVES : To assess among US physicians (1) frequency of requests to spread out recommended vaccination schedule for children <2 years, (2) attitudes regarding such requests, and (3) strategies used and perceived effectiveness in response to such ...

Objectives: The National Immunization Survey (NIS) family of surveys includes NIS–Child, which monitors vaccination coverage for the U.S. population of children aged 19–35 months; NIS– Teen, which monitors vaccination coverage for the U.S. popu...